


The House Wins

by catmiint



Category: Danny Phantom, Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, Government Experimentation, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, danny joins the team
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:15:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26541253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catmiint/pseuds/catmiint
Summary: Danny’s been through the unthinkable and has given up on Phantom. He thought he’d never be a hero again until the Justice League came knocking on his door and reawoke something in him.
Comments: 21
Kudos: 255





	1. A New Beginning

**July 19th, Greenbay**

**Robin POV**

  


“Sooo why the hell are we at some dude’s mansion in civvies for League business again?” Wally asked Dick in a stage whisper. 

  


Dick frowned and looked ahead at Bruce, who was making no indication that he heard but probably still listening regardless. With a shrug, he responded, “It’s super weird. This Masters guy contacts Bruce saying he has a potential new member for the team. No idea how he found out about who we were or even about the Team since that hasn’t gone public.” 

  


“Uh huh, and why am I here?” 

  


Another shrug. “Asked to bring along either you or Kaldur, and if the Waynes are showing up, well, you know.” 

  


Wally opened his mouth to say something else, but was stopped by the sound of Bruce pressing the doorbell. It chimed loud and long, drowning out any potential at further questioning. It wasn’t long before the dor was pushed open, revealing a tall, wellkept man with slick gray hair pulled into a ponytail. Dick recognized him offhandedly as the man they were here to see, Vlad Masters, having seen him once or twice at various parties with Bruce.

  


Masters smiled politely at them, speaking as he stepped to the side of the door to usher them in, “Ah Bruce, it’s a pleasure to be seeing you again. Please do come in.” Bruce greeted him before stepping inside, giving a subtle nod of his head to Dick and Wally behind him so that they would follow. Masters continued as they entered his mansion, “I’ll let you know right away that I’ve given all of my staff the day off, so you have no worries about anyone overhearing our discussion today.” 

  


“It’s curious that we’re having these discussions at all, Vlad,” Bruce said coolly but politely, “It’s not everyday that I’m contacted for League matters.” 

  


“Not in this persona, of course,” Masters said with a smile that sent shivers down Dick’s spine, “But I can’t have anyone seeing Batman and some proteges gracing me with their presence. The questioning of the press would be quite bothersome.” 

  


Wally caught Dick’s eyes and gave _a look_ that amounted to saying ‘I don’t trust this guy one bit’, and Dick found himself agreeing with that sentiment. This Masters guy just oozed false sincerity and an off putting vibe. Something about the very air around him seemed charged, setting Dick on edge. 

  


The careful small talk continued as Masters led the trio to a sitting room, complete with a roaring fire in the fireplace and tea set out on a table. Masters took a cup and saucer for himself before settling in a large, leather armor chair. He gestured, “Please feel free to help yourself.”

  


Dick didn’t want to look rude by denying it, so he poured himself some tea to absently sip on. He could see Wally practically salivating, as he grabbed a tea plate and piled it with small sandwiches and scones. In any other situation he might laugh and crack a joke, but one glance in Masters’ direction made the comment die on his tongue. 

  


Damn did this guy feel slimy to be around. 

  


“I’m sure you’re wondering about what I’ve called you here to discuss,” Masters finally said after taking a slow drink from his cup.

  


Bruce’s expression was carefully schooled, not showing any tension or suspicion, as he said, “Yes, you mentioned over the phone something about having a potential candidate for us.”

  


“This boy is more than just a potential candidate. Dare I say he’s someone that might even be able to set an example for your, ah, less experienced heroes.” Masters all but preened as he talked, making Dick narrow his eyes. He wasn’t too sure if he wanted anything to do with this man, let alone take someone onto the team on his advice. Wally made a disapproving noise through where he was inhaling scones, seeming surprised at the words.

  


“I reviewed the tapes you sent and did some research of my own. I was impressed,” Bruce admitted.

  


Now _that_ surprised Dick. Bruce was rarely impressed, and even rarer was it for him to admit such a thing. 

  


“Woah, woah, let’s step back here,” Wally interrupted after swallowing his food, “who the hell are you trying to get us to be teammates with?” 

  


Masters didn’t seem bothered by the interruption and answered, “A young lad I’ve had the pleasure of taking under my protection as a guardian of sorts. He was a solo hero for close to two years before... unfortunate circumstances made him unable to continue that work.” 

  


“Solo for two years?” Dick echoed, “How old is this guy?”

  


“Daniel is seventeen,” he said simply, “started shortly after his fourteenth birthday. He didn’t have a mentor or anyone to show him the ropes and was responsible for protecting his town on his own until he had to retire his persona last August.” 

  


Dick considered what Masters had said, simultaneously impressed but concerned. It wasn’t very common for first generation heroes to emerge and especially not at such a young age. Having someone like that on the team could be pretty useful, but there was the matter of whatever ‘unfortunate circumstances’ that Masters was dancing around. There were a lot of things that could force a hero’s persona into retirement. Some more worrying than others. He looked over to his own mentor, hoping to try to guess at what he was thinking. Bruce, however, looked stoic as ever. Sometimes Dick was able to glean more than most from Bruce’s expressions, and other times he hated his mentor’s poker face as much as everyone else. At the very least, Bruce didn’t seem surprised by any of this information. Perhaps this conversation was more for his and Wally’s benefit.

  


“What exactly made him retire so early?” He ventured to ask.

  


“Ah, that is for young Daniel to discuss if he wishes. I’ll simply leave it at an injury.” 

  


“You’re suggesting we add someone to the team that’s too injured to do his work?” Wally asked, confusion evident in his voice. 

  


“The matter is complicated, Wallace,” Masters said with an indecipherable smile. Wally cringed at hearing his full name. Not seeming to either notice or mind, he continued, “Daniel was a hero of no small power. I’d wager that at his peak he’d be able to go toe to toe with Superman and come out just fine. The events surrounding his injury compromised both his hero and civilian identities, which is why I’ve been looking after him the past few months. While he is no longer at his peak, he would still be able to provide a much appreciated power boost as well as experience to your fledgling team.”

  


Dick soaked in that information. The idea of someone being able to fight Superman and _not_ end up a puddle on the ground was absurd. Made doubly absurd by the fact that this guy was _seventeen_. He wasn’t sure he was buying Masters’ bullshit, but a glance at Bruce had him doubting that. His mentor seemed to be seriously considering Masters’ words. What exactly was on those tapes that Bruce got to see that had him so onboard with this mysterious new member?

  


The question sat funny with Dick. 

  


“Yeahhh,” Wally said, dragging out the word, “I’m not quite sure I believe that. If he was so powerful wouldn’t we know about him?” 

  


“Not necessarily,” Dick murmured, deep in thought, “a lot of small town heroes don’t get much publicity or renown. No one’s really reporting on that sort of thing outside of local media when the Justice League exists.” 

  


“Okay, but I’m still sensing some sort of catch here.” Wally pointed out. 

  


He was right. Something did seem off. 

  


Masters sighed, fidgeting with his pulled back hair, “Yes, well the problem lies in convincing Daniel himself to go on this endeavor. The fact is he would be an invaluable asset for the League to have on their side, and this sitting around doing nothing does not suit him. I was hoping that his own peers might be able to coax him out of his shell. See the possibility being dangled in front of him.”

  


“So we’re trying to recruit someone who doesn’t even want to be recruited? Great.” Dick said, a sarcastic note to the end of it. 

  


Bruce finally spoke as he set down his own saucer on the table in front of them, “From what I’ve seen of him, I agree that he would make a good addition to the team. It’s worth meeting him at the very least.” 

  
“Do we have any say in this? Because it sounds like we don’t have any say in this,” Wally grumbled under his breath too quiet for the adults to hear.Dick just half shrugged in response. No point fighting it apparently since Wally was right that it didn’t seem like they would have a choice.

  


“Well,” he began “Where is this guy?”

  


“Up in his room at the moment,” Masters replied with an insincere smile, “If you would follow me.”

  


The four of them stood up, abandoning the tea (and scones to Wally’s dismay) in favor of meeting this mystery recruit. Masters led them through his mansion, making more polite smalltalk with Bruce as he did. Dick honestly tuned out the two talking in favor of elbowing Wally.

  


“Not sure how I feel about this,” he murmured. 

  


“Yeah, it’s totally weird. How can we just trust this guy?” Wally asked, crinkling his nose. 

  


Dick didn’t have an answer to that and shrugged. 

  


Ahead of them, Masters stopped in front of a door with a handwritten “DO NOT ENTER” sign on it. Underneath the bold words was smaller text that read “Seriously Vlad, that means you.” Masters raised a hand to knock politely. There were the sounds of muffled cursing and shuffling beyond the door before it swung open, revealing the small figure of a boy that appeared to be barely any older than Dick. He had the same raven black hair and deep blue eyes, but his features were much softer than his own. The boy wore spotted boxers and an oversized sweater emblazoned with the NASA logo. He was using one sleeve to wipe at his eyes, yawning as he did. All in all, he was relatively plain looking except for a notch in one of his ears. 

  


Dick was surprised, this wasn’t what he was expecting when Masters and Bruce talked about a hero that once had the power to rival superman. This was just some kid, and a very tired one at that if the dark circles around his eyes were anything to go by. 

  


“Daniel, how nice to see you finally awake,” Vlad greeted the boy with a bemused smile. There was warmth in his voice, but a hint of something else that Dick couldn’t place.

  


“Shut it, old man,” He grumbled in response, “Who even are these people, you didn’t say we were having—” He stopped mid sentence to look at Wally oddly. His head was cocked to the side as if he was listening to something, and then he squinted to examine him. A flicker of understanding came across his face before he looked to Dick and then Bruce. Now the look on his face was _alarm._ Without another warning, the door slammed in their faces, and there were the muffled noises of someone hurrying away from it.

  


Dick blinked, confused. What the hell had just happened? And why did Masters not seem bothered or even surprised by the interaction? Instead, Masters turned to the three of them with a half laugh. “I apologize for Daniel’s manners, but he should be joining us shortly if you want to return to the living room downstairs.” 

  


“What makes you so sure he wants to talk to us? He just slammed the door in our faces.” Dick pointed out, a bit miffed about the door thing. 

  


“Most likely just surprised at our company. Not every day Batman shows up at your bedroom door,” Masters chuckled. 

  


Bruce raised an eyebrow, “And he figured that out?” 

  


“He’s very clever. This was why I asked for you to bring along Wallace or Kaldur. He noticed something was off with him, and the gears in his head started turning.” 

  


“Hey!” Wally called out, “What’s off about me?” 

  


“Daniel has both heightened senses and a particular ability to… see people. Once he noticed, he was able to tell you were a metahuman.” He explained quickly, almost as if it were an inconsequential thing. 

  


“A useful skill,” Bruce noted, and Dick had to admit that being able to suss out potential metahumans _did_ seem pretty useful.

  


“I don’t like it,” Wally grumbled under his breath. Dick got the sensation that this particular interaction was the reason that Wally or Kaldur were even requested to tag along to this meeting. Bait of some sort to lure out a show of this recruit’s competence or something. 

  


With their mysterious potential companion notified as to their presence, the group returned to the living room downstairs and settled back in. Minutes passed and stretched on with no sign of anything until there was a noise like the soft hissing of air rushing through a crack.

  


“So what the hell are Batman and some sidekicks doing here?” A voice came from behind Dick. He jumped and snapped his head back to look, surprised to see the boy from upstairs standing nonchalantly with his arms crossed over his chest. He had changed clothes and looked significantly more awake than before, but had an expression of vague disdain as he spoke to Masters.

  


Even Bruce seemed startled by the boy’s sudden appearance, but Masters was unperturbed. He pinched the bridge of his nose and scolded, “Daniel.” 

  


“What?” The boy asked with a shrug, “The only reason _you_ would invite a member of the Justice League here is if it was about me, so they already know about the powers. Besides,” he grumbled, “Stop calling me that.”

  


Ignoring the boy’s request to not be called Daniel, Masters continued, “I believe introductions are in order now that Daniel himself has arrived.” 

  


“Danny.” The boy mumbled as he walked around the couch and swiped a scone before settling in the couch across from Dick, Wally, and Bruce. “I hate being called Daniel.” 

  


Dick glanced at Bruce to see how he would introduce himself, who merely said, “Batman.” He followed suit, introducing himself as Robin and Wally as Kid Flash. Recognition was obvious on Danny’s face, but it quickly gave way to apprehension and suspicion. He looked between the three of them oddly, quietly eating the scone he grabbed. 

  


“No point in beating around the bush,” Dick muttered under his breath before clearing his throat and speaking up, “We have a team of younger heroes that we think you’d be a good fit for. We’ve heard a bit about y—”

  


Danny cut him off, “No.” 

  


“N-no?” Dick spluttered, surprised he couldn’t even get the full pitch out before being rejected. 

  


“I’m not a hero. I’m not a good fit for this ‘team’ of yours,” Danny’s voice was hard as he spoke, like he was trying to make his stance clear and not be pushed on the matter. 

  


“Daniel—” Masters began to speak only for Danny to pointedly huff. He acquiesced, “Danny, consider what they have to say. We both know the way you’re going can’t go on much longer, it would be best if you—” 

  


“And how do _you_ know what’s best for me?” He all but hissed, back straightening. Danny seemed determined to not let anyone get a word in otherwise with how he interrupted them. It was striking how he was immediately on the defensive before they’d even started talking about anything really. 

  


“So combative, really Daniel?” Vlad asked, a pointed disappointment in his voice, “And when we have guests?”

  


Danny crossed his arms over his chest, “I don’t care, make them leave.”

  


“I can’t do that, they’re here to make you an offer.” 

  


“I heard their offer, and I say it sucks.”  
  


“Really, Daniel?” Vlad asked again as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “Can you not be reasonable for five minutes?” 

  


“Um, not to interrupt your little… spat, but why is it exactly you don’t want to be a part of the team?” Dick tried to edge his way into the conversation.

  


“I don’t want to,” Danny responded petulantly, arms still crossed over his chest. 

  


“Uh huh, enlightening,” He deadpanned, “No, seriously, what’s the reason?”

  


Danny frowned, thinking, before he opened his mouth to reply, “I’m—I’m not what you think I am. I’m not some hero or anything, I’d just be holding you all back.” 

  


“I think that’s for the Team to decide.” 

  


Danny’s frown deepened as he considered. 

  


Wally leaned in, stage whispering, “Plus it’d get you out of this dusty mansion to get away from Masters.” 

  


(Masters managed to only look slightly put off by that comment before composing himself). 

  


Wally’s words elicited a bark of laughter from Danny, who tore off a chunk of the scone to eat. He spoke through a mouthful of food as he next spoke, “You got me there.” 

  


“So?,” Dick urged, “How about a trial period?”

  


“A trial period,” Danny repeated.

  


“Yuuup, you come with us, see how things are, and if you don’t like it then leave.”

  


There was a long tense silence before Danny sighed, “Yeah, yeah. Fine.”

  


“I’m glad you’ve come around to the logical conclusion, Daniel,” Masters said, all but preening that he was getting what he wanted.

  


This Masters guy really needed to quit while he was ahead. 

  


Danny rolled his eyes and made a disgusted noise, “Whatever, I’m going to go get my things.” 

  


“Daniel don’t you dare just teleport aw—” Masters began only to be interrupted by Danny teleporting away in a cloud of green mist. His eye twitched at that, but he tried to compose himself enough to turn to give Bruce an apologetic smile. “You give a teenager the ability to teleport, and this is what happens.” 

  


Dick tuned out the rest of the conversation between Masters and Bruce, as they waited for Danny to return. Soon enough, the teen returned. He noted that Danny didn’t bring much with him, just a duffel bag and a backpack. Part of him hoped that the boy was just travelling light, but he got the sense his possessions really could be minimized into two bags. 

  


Masters’ Mansion was a bit of a ways from the nearest Zeta Tube, so Dick, Wally, and Danny piled into the back of a rented car. As they pulled out of the driveway and onto the road, some tension seemed to leave Danny’s soldier. There was almost palpable relief to be away from Masters, which intrigued him. Sure, Dick didn’t get the _best_ vibes from Masters, but Danny seemed to genuinely hate the guy. Which made it even more curious that he’d been staying there for quite some time apparently. 

  


“Sorry about being so hostile back there,” Danny sheepishly said, rubbing the back of his neck, “Vlad and I just really don’t get along.” 

  


So Dick was right about Danny just really hating Masters. Interesting.

  


“If you don’t get along then why were you even staying there?” Wally questioned with a skeptical note to his voice.

  


Danny looked away as he spoke, “I—I had nowhere else to go.” 

  


There was a moment of silence before Dick cleared his throat, “Well, uh, we have a few other members that live at the Cave too, so you won’t be alone.” 

  


“Ah, right.” Danny muttered. He seemed anxious or uncomfortable at the mention of other people. The pause in the conversation stretched on into an uncomfortable silence. Danny tapped the car door with one finger, fidgeting, for a few seconds before turning his head to look out the window at the passing scenery. A clear signal that he was backing out of the conversation.

  


Dick caught Wally’s eye, who gave him a half-hearted shrug as if to say _What am I supposed to do?_ and they let the conversation drop

  


* * *

  


  


“Recognized: Batman 02, Robin B01, Kid Flash B03,” The voice of the Zeta Tube system droned. 

  


As they materialized in the Cave, Dick shot a glance towards Danny to catch his reaction. He was looking around cautiously, picking apart the room with his eyes. There was a sort of wariness to him that seemed out of place on someone their age, and it took some time for him to seem satisfied with his examination of the Cave. 

  


None of the other team members were there to greet them, which was expected given that usually they got together to train around this time during the day. They must be in the training room wondering where Dick and Wally were. 

  


“Should we join the others for training?” Dick asked Bruce, all while stretching out after the long car ride. 

  


Bruce gave an affirmative nod, “Change and head over there, I want to speak with Danny alone for a moment.” 

  


Dick raised a brow at that, curious, but shrugged and turned to leave. As much as he _really_ wanted to hear what the two would talk about, he figured that Bruce would tell him if it was truly important. Maybe it was something about Danny’s past—after all, Bruce would have had to do at least some digging in his own time before he’d consider someone for the team. Nudging Wally’s shoulder with his own, the two headed off. A quick change of clothes out of their civvies later, they were entering into the training room. The rest of the Team turned to greet them with waves, or in Superboy’s case a subtle nod. 

  


“Nice of you to finally join us,” Kaldur called out from where he was practicing some hand-to-hand with a punching bag. 

  


“Where have you been?” Megan asked curiously, floating over to him. 

  


“Seems like we got another new teammate,” Dick admitted. 

  


Superboy grunted, “Already?” 

  


“Yeeeep,” Dick said, popping the P. 

  


“He’s talking with the Bats right now,” Wally spoke up.

  


Before anyone had anything else to add, the doors slid open again to reveal Bruce and Danny. Dick looked him over again to try to gauge how the conversation went, but nothing had changed from the same tired weariness that seemed to hang over him. He was fidgeting with the sleeve of his hoodie, not really daring to look up at the others. 

  


“This is Danny,” Bruce announced, stepping aside to let Danny move forward. His eyes darted up, and he nervously stepped forward, murmuring a half-hearted greeting.

  


Megan seemed to light up and floated over to him, excited to meet the new addition to the team. “Ah, I’m M’gann M’orzz, but you can just call me Megan!” Danny startled a bit at someone approaching him but recovered quickly, giving her a simple nod and looking to the others. Kaldur and Superboy echoed off their names as well, having stopped what they were doing to observe their new teammate. 

  


“Since we’re interrupting training, how about we have a small exercise to introduce Danny to the group,” Bruce suggested. Or, it was less of a suggestion and more of a light command. He continued, “Danny, if you wouldn’t mind, how about a spar against Kid Flash, Superboy, and Aqualad.” 

  


Dick blinked. A 3-v-1? That hardly seemed fair. He shot Bruce a _What are you doing?_ stare only for it to be ignored. Danny seemed just as surprised from what he could see too. The teen was shifting from side to side, going between giving Bruce a bewildered look and eyeing up his three would be sparring partners. 

  


It was Danny that finally broke the beat of silence, “O-okay? I guess we can do that,” He grumbled, stepping forward to the center of the training room. Hesitantly, Superboy, Kaldur, and Wally moved to meet him. 

  


Dick felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at Bruce who murmured, “Watch the fight,” in a low whisper. 

  


Danny bounced back and forth as if ready to jump up into the air at any moment. His fighting stance was loose and light, but not in a way that would have Dick assuming he was inexperienced. He was looking from Kaldur to Superboy to Wally warily, but didn’t move to act first. The trio gauged that Danny wouldn’t move to attack and an agreement rustl

  


Kid rushed forward, but Dick saw Danny react with a slight glance to his side in the split second he had before. Instead of trying to dodge or steel himself against the attack, his form flickered. It appeared to be made out of mist or a hologram of some sort for the briefest of moments, and Kid passed right through him. He stumbled when there wasn’t the expected impact, calling out a confused curse.

  


Superboy leaped forward, both arms raised above his head to crash down on top of Danny. Again, his form shifted and Superboy went through. 

  


_What the hell is this?_ Superboy asked over the mindlink. His frustration was obvious as he stood to recover from his failed attack.

  


_Some form of intangibility,_ Kid responded quickly, _Like Flash or Manhunter._

  


_Maybe magical attacks can go through it?_ Megan supplied. 

  


At that, Kaldur’s water-bearers lit up with electricity. _Guess we’ll see_. He lifted one of his water blades and lunged. Again, Danny shifted into that odd mist-like form, but this time the electricity arced across his body. He flinched, obviously affected by the attack and surprised by the fact. When Kaldur swung with his second blade, Danny seemed to realize that his intangibility wouldn’t help and did a handspring backwards to get out of the way. Something about his movement was off, Dick noted. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it but the way he moved was unnatural in a way. As if he was ready to leap into the air at any moment. 

  


While he was landing, Kid Flash took the opportunity to dash forward and go to trip him on the recovery. Danny stumbled, but straightened himself quickly and ducked out of the way of another punch from Superboy. 

  


“Why isn’t he attacking?” Dick muttered under his breath to Bruce, watching as Danny threw up a green energy shield on one side to catch a punch from Superboy. 

  


“Good question,” Bruce responded in a tone of voice that was less ‘I don’t know’ and more ‘I want you to figure it out for yourself’. Dick huffed a bit at that. So this was another test, huh?

  


He tried to watch the fight with new eyes to see what he was missing. Danny was circled by the three Team members, but didn’t appear worried or panicked. Instead he seemed thoughtful. His lips slightly pursed, brow furrowed, eyes flicking from person to person. He was taking it all in, Dick realized. “He’s testing the waters,” he told Bruce, brow furrowed, “Trying to bait out their powers without revealing too much of what he can do.” 

  


Bruce nodded, too subtle for anyone not paying close attention to catch, “He was set up against three unfamiliar opponents with no reference on how outclassed he was. Underestimating someone’s strength can be deadly.” 

  


“But we know nothing about his powers either,” he pointed out. 

  


“No, you don’t. Employ the same strategy against him,” Bruce said with a gesture towards the fight. 

  


Seeing permission to join the training, Dick straightened himself from where he was leaning against the wall and shifted into a fighting stance. _Seems like I get to join the party_ , he told his teammates. He waited a few beats to look for a good opportunity to jump in. He found it and exchanged a few blows with a surprised Danny. 

  


Kaldur tried to take advantage of the opportunity and swing again with his electrified water-bearers. This time, however, Danny turned and _grabbed_ the blade with one hand. There was a hum in the air and suddenly the electricity flowed back towards Kaldur, shocking him as he stumbled back. 

  


A realization came over Dick, _He can redirect electricity._

  


_Distract him so he can’t. Robin from the front, Kid left and Superboy right._

  


Danny bit his lip as he looked quizzically between them all. Dick could see the thoughts racing through his mind. _Act now while he’s recovering,_ Dick snapped. But before they could do anything, a green bubble enclosed Danny on all sides. His head was cocked to the side as he took a moment to examine the group. After a few seconds, his gaze snapped to where Megan was on the sidelines. 

  


_Uhhh, guys?_ Megan asked nervously. 

  


Before anyone could react, a second green bubble appeared around her. Dick desperately reached out through the mental link, calling Megan’s name again and again but to no avail. She either couldn’t hear them or couldn’t respond anymore. In fact.. Dick couldn’t hear anymore thoughts from any of his teammates. A bewildered look passed between the four of them. How was this even possible? Was the unspoken question.

  


Danny took advantage of their surprised and let the bubble around himself drop. He moved quick, more quickly than Dick thought he would be capable of. Green energy formed around his palm, then, as Wally went to intercept him, Danny reacted with his eyes flashed from green to cyan and suddenly the floor beneath him was iced over. Wally tried to catch himself, but only succeeded in wiping out spectacularly. 

  


The ice vanished and Danny sprung forward, uppercutting Superboy and catching him off guard. The two exchanged blows for several seconds, until Kaldur stepped in to swing with his water-bearers. The flat sides caught Danny on the back, but his eyes changed cyan again and the water froze before shattering. He handsprung backwards, launching himself _up_ into the air—further than any normal human could—and over Kaldur, crouching after the landing and sweeping his leg out to catch Kaldur. 

  


Kladur fell forward onto Superboy in a tangle of limbs, and Danny extended a hand. A thick, green substance shot from it and coated the two. It looked like a sticky cement that held them together as they desperately struggled to separate themselves from each other and the floor. 

  


“Guess it’s just us,” Dick noted, circling slowly around Danny. He wasn’t sure what the play here was, the wheels in his head trying to turn and formulate something— _anything._

  


If it were straight acrobatics and hand-to-hand combat, Dick felt sure he’d be able to win. Danny’s form had the uncertain looseness of someone not formally trained. There were little errors that he made that would cost him a direct confrontation. But Danny had powers—a _lot_ of them apparently. While Dick was trained to go up against metahumans, this was one that was unknown and reportedly able to go “toe to toe with Superman” in his glory days. Dick would certainly put up a fight, but he wasn’t seeing a way out of this one. 

  


Dick raised his hands in mock surrender, which got a bewildered look out of Danny. “Wait really?” He began to ask. 

  


He grinned and winked, “Of course not!”, then dashed forward to meet Danny with a flurry of blows. 

  


Danny seemed taken aback by this, switching back into a defensive mode briefly to block the blows. The surprise did Dick some good, as he got a good hit in that he wasn’t expecting. The downside being that he wasn’t exactly pulling that punch enough, and he could hear the _crunch_ as his fist met Danny’s nose. _Shit_ , he thought to himself. Breaking a teammate’s nose on their first day was going to go over so great. The pain, however, seemed to be the spark that Danny needed to spur him onwards though. There was a determined glint in his eyes now rather than the cautious guarding he’s been keeping up since they met at Masters’ mansion. 

  


With Dick’s next punch, Danny’s form flickered. The momentum of his punch without anything to stop it sent him forward a step before he could ground himself. Then Danny did something Dick wasn’t expecting. He brought his leg up and smashed it downwards, _hard_ , directly onto Robin’s food. The pain jolted through him and he cried out a bit, instinctively going to try to cradle his foot before the years of training stepped in to keep him from doing so. It hurt like a bitch, like the worst stubbed toe ever. 

  


It was enough for Danny to catch his hands and bind them together in that thick green substance holding Kaldur and Superboy together. Then, he hooked one leg around the back of Dick’s knees, bound them together, and pulled him to the ground. 

  


All while continuing to maintain the bubble around Megan.

  


Dick blinked, dazed, from where he sat on the ground. That was an impressive display of power if he’d ever seen one. The sheer array of Danny’s skillset was dizzying enough but then there was his ability to seamlessly switch between powers and weave them together. Look up to his mentor, Dick saw that even _Bruce_ looked mildly impressed with the display. 

  


Danny paused, panting slightly, and straightened. With a wave of his hand, the bubble and green substance disappeared. The tailend of Megan’s frustrated cries suddenly filled the air. Kaldur and Superboy extricated themselves from each other. Dick and Wally picked themselves up off the floor. He raised one arm and wiped off the trickle of blood coming from his nose with the sleeve of his hoodie. Gross, but understandable. 

  


Batman approached from the sidelines and gave Danny a polite nod of his head. “You did well. If you’re up to the task, consider this your welcome to the Team. Kaldur should be able to help with the rest of your induction.” He made eye contact with Dick before turning to leave the training room without another word. 

  


Dick turned to Danny to voice his congratulations on becoming part of the team, but noticed Danny looked paler and listed to one side a bit. That caught his attention, tugging his lips down in a frown. “Are you alright?” He asked, the concern creeping into his voice, “Don’t look very whelmed.”

  


“Whelmed? What are you—” Danny began to ask under his breath before shaking his head and answering the question, “Uh, mostly. I just showed off a bit too much I think. Some, uh, some water maybe?” 

  


“We’ve done enough training for the day,” Kaldur announced, “I think we can all head to the kitchen and get some lunch.”

  


Everyone agreed and gathered their things before heading out. As they walked through the hallways, Dick siddled on up to Danny’s side. He started a bit at that, but untensed quickly enough that Dick didn’t think twice about the reaction. “Sorry about your nose,” he admitted with a grimace.

  


“My nose?” Danny asked, wrinkling his nose as if to demonstrate it was fine, “ _Oh!_ I barely even noticed, it gets broken so much.” 

  


“A broken nose is a broken nose,” Kaldur said firmly but gently. The kind of tone of voice that said “ _We should get that looked at”._

  


Danny shook his head, “Appreciate the concern, but I’m fine. I, uh, heal fast. It’s already back to normal.” 

  


“You have a healing factor?” Megan asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

  


“I’m not bulletproof like Superboy over there, but no normal injuries last very long on me. I once shattered my knee into like a million pieces and only had a slight limp by dinner,” Danny responded with a shrug. 

  


“That sounds handy,” Dick murmured thoughtfully. Healing factors weren’t exactly uncommon in metahumans, but it was the one power that he secretly let himself be a _little_ jealous of. 

  


“Yeah, when I was every gh—uh, every one of my enemies’ personal punching bag? Very useful,” he admitted with a wry smile. Dick wondered what he almost tripped up and said before correcting himself. 

  


“Soooo,” Wally began, “Solo hero work. How’s that?”

  


Danny got a thoughtful look on his face as he considered, “I dunno, I’m not sure what it’s like with a mentor or a team, so I have nothing to compare it to.” 

  


“You’ve gotta give us _something_ ,” Wally pleaded with comically big eyes. 

  


“I guess it’s—it’s scary? You don’t really have anyone to rely on when things get tough. I always wish I had a mentor like you guys,” Danny admitted. 

  


“You’re not living in anyone’s shadow,” Superboy grumbled under his breath, still loud enough to be heard. 

  


Danny snorted, “That would sure beat freaking out because I’ve got all these freaky powers developing and no way to control them all while people keep trying to kick my ass.” 

  


“It’s pretty impressive that you figured your powers out yourself,” Kaldur said with a light smile, causing Danny to blush and try to stutter out a response. He continued, “And ‘freaky’ isn’t exactly the term I’d use.” 

  


“Eh, you just haven’t seen the worse of what I have to offer,” Danny said with a shrug. To Dick it seemed less like a threat and more like casual and lowkey self deprecation. He raised an eyebrow at that, sure metahumans weren’t exactly _common_ but things have come a long way and they were readily accepted. 

  


“Like what?” Megan asked curiously. 

  


Dick was also curious. 

  


The temperature in the hallway dropped a few degrees suddenly, as Danny’s eyes took on that eerie cyan glow. There was a strange pressure on Dick’s chest that felt uncomfortable, almost like it was reaching in to squeeze his heart. The hairs on his arms stood on end and a general sense of unease was prickling down his spine. There was a slight echo to Danny’s voice as he spoke, “I can get pretty… spooky.” 

  


And then it was gone. 

  


Dick let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.   
  


“Woah,” Wally breathed. 

  


Woah indeed.

  


A silence stretched between the group after that that would be uncomfortable if not for the fact that they had reached the living room and kitchen. Wally gave them all a thumbs up before speeding away to the fridge to find something to gorge himself on. The others followed slower, grabbing water to rehydrate after the training session. “Anyone want pasta?” Dick asked as he looked into the cabinets for something to make. It wasn’t too often that he cooked, but he wanted to grab dinner with the Team so they could continue getting to know Danny. A few of his teammates voiced their agreement with the choice, and he started up cooking. To his surprise, Danny offered to help immediately by asking where the pots were and filling one up with water. 

  


“I was the only one in my family that could cook,” he offered up with a half-hearted shrug, “making pasta isn’t that hard.” 

  


Wally finished inhaling whatever snack he had grabbed and boosted himself onto the kitchen counter. He was examining Danny closely, who squirmed under the scrutiny. After a few seconds of the look, he finally asked, “So what all can you do? It felt like you just kept pulling up powers during the fight. Most metahumans can only do one or two things.” 

  


“Oh, uh,” Danny rubbed the back of his neck, “I can do a lot, I suppose. Most of my powers developed out of necessity. I guess I have uh some basic stuff—invisibility, intangibility, flight. I can manipulate a form of semi-solid energy. Um, there’s teleporting although that’s new. I can create ice,” his voice then dropped, “There’s a few other things, but I don’t use those powers so no point bringing them up.”

  


“You can fly?” Megan asked, lighting up a bit at that. 

  


“What about the electricity?” Kaldur inquired at the same time.

  


“I guess the electricity thing goes in with the energy manipulation. I can’t make my own lightning, but I can encourage it elsewhere,” he answered. Then, he smiled for the first time that Dick had seen, “And yeah, I can fly. It’s my favorite power actually.” 

  


Megan beamed as she spoke, “We should go flying together sometime, I can show you my favorite views over Happy Harbour.”

  


“That—that would actually be really nice,” Danny replied in a small, soft voice. He seemed taken aback by the offer, but pleasantly so. Dick wondered when the last time he’d hung out around anyone other than Masters was. 

  


Superboy, however, huffed at that, and Dick shot him a sympathetic look. Not that Superboy would be particularly comforted by it, but he knew that some of the powers that he didn’t get from Superman were a bit of a sore subject.

  


“All those powers and you had no formal training?” Kaldur asked, clarifying again. It really did seem unbelievable, so Dick didn’t fault him for asking. 

  


“Yeah, just, uh, just me,” Danny ducked his head to avoid making eye contact. Something about the praise embarrassed him and he cleared his throat, turning away to the stove.

  


“Still surprised we wouldn’t have heard about your hero persona,” Wally said, a bit of a skeptical note to his voice, “What was it anyways? I mean, I don’t suppose you went around using your own name as a hero cover?” 

  


Danny was oddly quiet at that, and Dick noticed the slight shake in his hand as he stirred the pasta on the stove. “I had a cover, but it’s in the past, no point digging it up.” Must be something relating to whatever injury he had sustained in the past, Dick figured.

  


“And why not?” Superboy asked. He hadn’t heard what Dick and Wally had about his supposed injury. Ah, maybe they should have warned the rest of the team that there might be some sensitive subjects. 

  


“I didn’t exactly leave my previous gig willingly,” Danny cringed as he admitted it, “If the wrong people hear I’m still around, it’d just be bad news, okay?” 

  


Now that caused a bit of silence amongst the team, as they all considered Danny’s circumstances. Dick was a bit surprised to hear that it sounded like someone might be after Danny. He hoped that it wouldn’t present a danger to the team, but maybe that’s what Bruce wanted to speak with Danny about earlier? He’d have to ask just to soothe his own conscience about it. 

  


“Well,” Kaldur cleared his throat, “have you considered a new name yet?”

  


“A new name?” Danny echoed, brow furrowed. 

  


“You’ll need a name to be set up in the system so you don’t have to be brought along as a guest,” Dick pointed out. 

  


There was a long pause again, before Danny thought of something and smiled. “Cryo,” he said, “My new name will be Cryo.” 


	2. Drop Zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny's first mission with the team doesn't exactly go to plan.

**July 19th, Mount Justice**

**Danny POV**

Danny wasn’t sure what to make of joining the Team. After dinner, Megan and Kaldur had offered to give him a tour of the Cave. The tour ended with them showing him an empty room that would be his. Everyone in the team had a room in case there were late nights or any reason to lie low in the Cave, but only Megan and Superboy made much use of theirs. He was lying on his, admittedly comfortable, new bed and staring up at the ceiling considering the consequences of joining the Team. 

He wasn’t even sure if he was gonna stick with it. He wasn’t Phantom anymore, so he didn’t exactly feel like a hero with much to contribute. Even if apparently goddamned  _ Batman _ of all people thought otherwise. That still threw him through a loop. Still, sitting around Vlad’s mansion doing nothing all day  _ was  _ driving him stir crazy in a way he couldn’t fully explain. Sometimes when he thought about it, there was an itching deep in his chest. He had these powers for a reason, he supposed, and he might as well put them to use. Do something with his life instead of acting like it ended. 

_ It did though,  _ a small piece of him whispered,  _ Your life did end. The Guys in White made sure of that. _

The thought set his lips in a deep frown. Another reason he was concerned with joining the Team. He didn’t want to wrap anyone else up in his mess. Too many people had already suffered on his behalf. The Team was better protected from being flat out killed, but that didn’t mean they still couldn’t get hurt. Or, the traitorous part of his mind suggested, worst case scenario they found out about the half-ghost thing and thought he was better off with the government where he belonged. 

It would do some good to get distance from Phantom and Phantom’s persona. None of the team had to know anything about the ghost thing. He was happy to just let them think he was a metahuman with a few too many powers. Being Cryo would be good, he thought. If he changed his look and switched up which powers he relied on, no one would be able to make the connection between Cryo and Phantom. Ice-themed heroes and villains were a dime a dozen, so he wouldn’t stand out much. The last thing he wanted was to stand out of a crowd. Besides, he liked the name Cryo. 

Danny didn’t have much in the way of possessions, however, and that included clothes. His nose wrinkled as he considered it. He’d have to get his hands on a new outfit for missions. He could always ask Vlad. The thought made him scowl a bit, as he fiddled with his phone in his pocket. Pulling it out, he unlocked it and navigated to his contacts. Vlad’s name glared up at him from the woefully empty list. Mocking, almost. He knew Vlad said that he wanted to help, but could he really trust him? Asking him for things felt weird, still. The place to stay and the new phone were nice and all, but how much could he really rely on that help? 

He didn’t really have anyone to rely on anymore. 

A pit formed in his stomach, and Danny put the phone back in his pocket. Looking up at the ceiling, he wasn’t surprised to find he was blinking away tears. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and sighed. He  _ really  _ had to stop moping like this. They were gone. Phantom was gone. It was time to just get over it. 

A knock on the door pulled Danny out of his thoughts. Thankfully. 

“I’m going to watch a movie if you want to join Superboy and I,” Megan asked, her voice soft around the edges and compassionate. She sounded hopeful and a bit giddy, as if the idea of Danny saying yes and joining them was exciting. He blinked, surprised at the invitation. It wasn’t like he had made a bad impression, but he wasn’t expecting anyone to jump at the chance to be his friend. 

Being social was never Danny’s strongest suit, given that he had only had two  _ maybe  _ three friends if Valerie counted. And that was before… everything. It’s been nearly a year since he’s properly hung out with anyone close to his age. Anxiety fluttered in his chest, and he looked from the ceiling to the door where Megan stood outside. He could see her shadow through the crack under the door, and her energy was palpable in the air. It would be a bit of a learning curve to get used to being around other nonhumans and filter out their auras so they weren’t so distracting. 

He realized he had let the silence stretch on a little too long, and Megan began to try to stutter out an apology for bothering him. He spoke up to cut off her awkward, rambling apologies, “Uh, yeah, sure.”

“Great!” She exclaimed. Danny could almost hear the smile in Megan’s voice, “We’ll be in the living room whenever you’re ready.” 

“Yeah, I’ll be out in a few minutes,” he responded. Megan seemed satisfied with that and left his door, her shadow passing and the sounds of footsteps fading down the hallway.

Maybe joining this team wouldn’t be so bad. 

* * *

**July 22, Santa Prisca**

Scratch that. This team was a fucking nightmare.

Danny was quite certain of that as he turned intangible to avoid a burst of gunfire in his direction. Both of the squads of enemies had turned on them as soon as Wally had gone crashing into the clearing and practically announcing their presence. Of course, none of this would have happened if Robin hadn’t vanished without a word as to where he was going. And then there was the way Megan couldn’t stop mooning after Superboy for five minutes. All in all, this mission was already a disaster. 

He flickered out of sight to lose the attention of the goons shooting at him, and shot a beam of energy to encase their weapons in ice. With their guns now useless, Wally moved in to knock them out with quick blows to the back of the head. Danny continued to weave through the battle invisibly, freezing weapons and occasionally throwing up a shield of green energy to protect one of the others from gunfire.

Robin dropped out of a tree, landing on one of the backs of two soldiers. There was a frustrated growl in his voice as he yelled, “What is wrong with you guys? Remember covert? Why didn’t you follow my lead, vanish into the jungle?”

  
“That’s what you were doing? Way to fill us in,” Wally snarked, all while engaged in hand to hand combat. He landed a solid kick to the man’s chest, who went flying backwards, and turned to Robin. “We’re not mind readers, you know.” Then, throwing a glance back to Megan, he added, “Er, I’m not anyways.”

“You told me I could only read the bad guys’ minds,” Megan complained, landing on the ground from where she was gently hovering. 

“Seriously, why are we bothering with the radios again?” Danny grumbled, turning out from a roundhouse kick to someone’s face. It seemed like that was the last of the enemy soldiers based on a quick glance around. 

“I don’t want people in my head,” Superboy protested with a huff. 

Danny frowned, “Neither do I, but radios can be jammed and it’ll be easier to keep our cover when we’re not speaking aloud. Then maybe next time Robin runs off, he’ll tell us!” He said the last part with a scathing look in Robin’s direction. Sure, it was Wally that had stumbled into the fight but he wouldn’t have been out of position if it wasn’t for Robin in the first place. He knew Robin likely expected himself to take the role of leader as Batman’s protege, but to do that he would need to actually _ lead _ . 

He looked up to see Kaldur approaching them, dragging the body of a man in red and black robes. Kaldur pulled out lengths of rope from his equipment and began to tie the man up while speaking, “That’s a good point. Megan, why don’t you link us up?” 

Megan nodded, “Alright,” she said. There was a brief pressure in Danny’s head and then a slight buzzing noise before he heard Megan’s voice again,  _ Is everyone linked up?  _

The others all affirmed that they were in the telepathic connection, (Superboy sounding the most reluctant), and Danny stood, hands on his hips. He looked around the clearing at the scattered unconscious bodies. Despite the setback, they had made good work of the two enemy squads. He moved to help Kaldur tying up some of the soldiers. It took time, and when they ran out of rope they had to resort to Danny using sticky ectoplasm as bonds. In all honesty, the ectoplasm ropes were probably a safer bet than the conventional ones. If anyone got loose and could get word back to command, their cover would be blown. Breaking ectoplasmic bonds was a lot harder than rope. 

“I recognize those uniforms,” Robin spoke up as they finished restraining the last soldier, “They belong to the cult of the Kobra.”

Danny huffed a bit. Robin was saying that with a tone of voice that indicated he expected everyone to know what he was talking about. At the risk of Robin thinking he was clueless, he asked, “Who exactly are these Kobra freaks for the uninitiated?”

“They’re a weirdo religious cult that worships their leader like some kind of god,” Robin explained, not even throwing a glance in Danny’s direction. 

“Oh! I love cults!” He drawled sarcastically, “Just what we need on this disaster of a mission.”

Kaldur cleared his throat to interrupt Danny’s sass, “I am certain Batman would have mentioned it if he knew a dangerous extremist was running Santa Prisca’s venom operation.”

“Agreed,” Robin said, rubbing his chin with one hand, “And since there’s clearly no love lost between the cultists and those goons, I’m betting Kobra came in and tossed them out. That’s why normal supply lines have been cut off.” He sounded proud of his deduction, confident grin set on his face.

Wally, however, rolled his eyes. “We get it. Kobra wanted super cultists. Mystery solved. Radio Bats and we’ll be home in time—”

“These cultists aren’t on venom,” Robin interrupted with a look that said  _ Duh _ . “Kobra’s hoarding the stuff. We don’t leave... Not until I know why.”

“Until  _ you  _ know why?” Wally’s annoyed voice was nearly a growl. 

“This team needs a leader,” he responded, puffing his chest out to face Wally.

Danny was  _ not  _ in the mood for this. “Like hell it’s gonna be you,” he snapped.

“Yeah, you’re a 13 year old kid who ducked out on us without a word,” Wally pointed emphatically at Robin as he spoke. A spike of annoyance drove through Danny. Like Wally was any better! He ran off too and was the one to get caught.

Before he could complain about that, Robin laughed, “And you’re both so mature? Wally blew our cover first chance he got.”

“He wouldn’t have been out there if you hadn’t disappeared!” Danny cried, trying to keep his voice low but failing. These two were on his nerves with the stunt they pulled. Seriously, he couldn’t believe that they were trained by Justice League members with this behavior. The rational part of him argued that he wasn’t much better, stooping to their level with the petty arguing. He kicked that part aside, and instead gave in to the pettiness.

“If you know so much, why didn’t you try to take the lead?” Robin swung towards him with a scowl.

“I don’t need to be a leader to recognize that you’re not one either,” Danny replied. He crossed his arms over his chest and huffed. 

Their argument was interrupted by one of the soldiers with black and white face paint chuckling. The man clucked his tongue, “Such clever ni ñ os, but you only know half the story. Let me show you the rest, let me get you into the factory via my secret entrance.”

_ That’s Bane,  _ Kaldur supplied over the telepathic bond,  _ He usually uses Venom to take on his enemies.  _

_ No way are we trusting this guy. This sounds way too convenient.  _ Danny complained, looking around the others to gauge their varying levels of similar mistrust. 

Megan crouched down next to Bane and examined him closely. “There  _ is  _ a secret entrance, but he’s also hiding something.” She brought her hands up to her temples and focused. Her eyes were consumed with white light as she did. Had the circumstances been different, Danny would have quipped about them being glowy eyes buddies. 

“Ah, ah, ah, chica,” Bane tutted, “Bane is not that easy.”

“Ugh, he’s mentally reciting football scores en Espa ñ ol,” Megan complained, ”This could take a while.”

“It’s not complicated. The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Bane tried to say with a placating tone of voice. He wanted them to trust him, but Danny was suspicious of the man’s motives. Sure, Bane didn’t like the Kobra cultists anymore than they did, but how far would that motivation carry him? What was stopping him from turning on them as soon as he got what he wanted. 

_ I’ve dealt with this type before.  _ Danny murmured telepathically. Images of the various times he’d had to team up with enemies, usually to disastrous results, played in his head.  _ He’ll betray us as soon as he doesn’t need us.  _

Kaldur considered that for a moment, before responding,  _ That doesn’t mean we can’t use him, we’ll just have to be careful. _

_ So we’re trusting someone that’s going to obviously betray us?  _ Robin sounded annoyed, and Danny could see how he shifted in frustration. 

_ There’s no other way unless Megan can get the location out of him,  _ Kaldur said. 

Megan stood up in front of Bane. She, too, looked frustrated. Danny sympathized with her, knowing that she wanted to prove herself only to hit a brick wall. She sighed and told them,  _ As long as he’s focusing on something else, his thoughts are too loud for me to find the entrance.  _

Danny regarded her and Bane carefully, the wheels in his head turning. Whenever he overshadowed someone, he could usually get vague impressions from them. They were never full thoughts or memories, but rather fragments of ideas. He supposed they were intended for ghosts to make overshadowing and acting as someone else easier, but he wasn’t well practiced enough to make use of the scraps he could gather from someone’s head. Megan, on the other hand, was a trained telepath. If they combined their efforts, she might be able to draw meaning out of the thoughts Danny got from Bane. 

Reluctantly, Danny spoke up,  _ Maybe I can be of assistance.  _ He stepped forward, hesitating before steeling his resolve. Overshadowing someone was something he hated doing, but it would be worth it if they could get the location of the secret entrance to the factory out of this. He turned intangible and reached his arms forward, pushing them against Bane’s chest. There was a force pushing back as Bane, panic flashing over his face, tried to fight it. 

Danny pushed harder, and then fell forward. As he overshadowed Bane, he could feel the man resisting him all the way. It manifested as a twisting in his stomach, almost making him nauseous. From experience, Danny knew that Bane’s eyes would be glowing a toxic, neon green now. The only indication that something had changed in the man. 

Confusion rippled across the Team, as Wally started and cried, “What the hell?”

When Danny spoke, he spoke as Bane, “Megan, quick, look for the tunnel again. I don’t know how long this is gonna last, he’s fighting back.” 

“A-alright,” Megan stuttered, obviously taken off guard. Despite that, she kneeled next to Bane again and refocused herself. Danny could feel Megan’s intrusion in his—in Bane’s—mind. The telepathy interacted weirdly with the overshadowing, muddling his and Bane’s thoughts together. He could swear he felt himself thinking in Spanish for a few moments, and resisted the urge to physically shake his—Bane’s—head to clear that away. Fragments of thoughts came up, memories and knowledge about the factory. It was too blurry for Danny to parse and understand. Eventually, Megan’s presence retreated. 

With the loss of Megan, Danny felt bereft for a moment. Hollowed out. His disorientation was enough for Bane to throw off the overshadowing, and Danny was expelled from the man’s body. Turning tangible, Danny crashed to the ground and tumbled over a few times. He pushed himself up to his feet unsteadily and rubbed his head. 

A bit breathless, he asked, “Did you get it?”

“Got it!” Megan triumphantly shouted, and then clapped her hands over her mouth when she realized how loud the sound was. 

Bane seemed to realize his defeat. “You’ll regret this,” he growled.

Superboy snorted, “Somehow, I don’t think we will.”

“Well, lead the way.” Kaldur said, gesturing to Megan.

The Team, led by Megan, exited the clearing and reentered into the forest. They tread carefully, wary of running into any more enemy squads. The silence between them was a bit tense, both from the previous argument and, Danny guessed, from the overshadowing. He understood. It was probably his least favorite power to use. Being overshadowed was an invasion of privacy and free will, not something he was keen to abuse after having learned his lesson with Poindexter. 

It was Wally that eventually broke the silence, asking, “So what was that?”

“It’s called overshadowing,” Danny replied simply, trying his best to not show his discomfort. His voice was still tight, fists curling slightly at his sides.

“Looked more like horror movie possession to me,” Robin commented. 

He probably didn’t mean much by it, but Danny cringed at that. “I suppose that’s another word for it,” he mumbled under his breath. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous tic he could never quite get rid of. Continuing, he explained, “Listen, this is part of what I meant about my powers. Not all of them are my favorite thing.”

“Don’t you ever dare to do that to me,” Superboy said, his tone tight. 

Danny’s hackles raised, and he immediately cried, “I wouldn’t! I hate overshadowing people, it feels wrong.”

Kaldur put a steadying hand on Danny’s shoulder. Whether to support him or tell him to quiet down, he didn’t know. Kaldur’s voice was comforting as he spoke, “Sometimes we need to do difficult things. Thanks to you, Megan was able to get the location.”

Danny flashed Kaldur a tense, but appreciative smile. At least he seemed not too freaked out by the overshadowing of Bane. Had it not been necessary, Danny would regret showing that power of his to the others. But, as it stood, it was the only thing that kept them from needing to ally with an obvious enemy. This was better, he reassured himself. This way, they didn’t run the risk of Bane betraying them and throwing a wrench in the mission. 

Megan hushed them, “Shh, we’re approaching the secret entrance. There’s a tunnel behind that boulder.”

There was a quite obviously placed boulder up ahead. It didn’t look natural in any way and was in front of what appeared to be a mine entrance. Kaldur thanked Megan and turned to Superboy, asking him to move it. Superboy, with a nod, approached the boulder. He rolled his shoulders back before grabbing onto it and tossing it aside as if it weighed nothing. Danny whistled at that feat of strength, impressed. It was one thing to know about Kryptonian strength and another to witness it. He wondered how his own ghostly strength would fare in a contest against Superboy.

Beyond the boulder, a mine shaft stretched onwards with hanging lanterns lighting the path. A quick glance at Megan’s expression said that this was what they were looking for. Danny just hoped when they reached the factory that Robin and Wally would have the sense to stick with the group until a plan was decided. Although, thinking that, Danny was certain he must have jinxed it. 

Some ten minutes later, the Team came towards a solid metal door. Megan hesitated a moment, before finding what must be the right button and pressing it. The red light turned green and with a beep, the door opened to reveal the interior of a locker room. There were no workers in the immediate vicinity to notice them, and Danny breathed a sigh of relief. Carefully, he crept forward towards the door that must lead to the rest of the factory. He pushed it ajar, and peaked out with Robin at his side.

“All clear!” Robin whispered, an excited note in his voice that made Danny’s stomach drop. He could just tell Robin was about to do something reckless again.

_ Robin, wait!  _ Danny hissed over the telepathic bond. He didn’t dare speak aloud for fear of someone overhearing them. 

Robin however, didn’t listen, and immediately darted out of the locker room. He disappeared around some machinery and was gone from sight. Danny groaned. Again? Really? This could only get worse if Wally—

“Stay put, I’ll get our intel and be back before the Boy Wonder,” Wally said, pulling his goggles down over his eyes. Then, he was off with a flash. 

Danny snapped mentally,  _ Really? Last time this got us caught. _

_ Hey, I got shot at last time.  _ Wally complained,  _ Besides, second time’s the charm. _

Robin spoke, sounding annoyed,  _ Don’t you  _ **_dare_ ** _ blow my cover, Kid.  _

“I guess that just leaves us,” Danny grumbled to the three remaining with him. He made eye contact with Kaldur, who seemed similarly disappointed with Wally and Robin. At least Megan and Superboy didn’t seem inclined to run off. 

He checked that the others were with him and carefully walked out of the locker room into the factory. Machinery whirred and hummed all around them, looming over them ominously with their contents and purposes unknown. The ambient machinery noises luckily muffled the sounds of their footsteps to anyone that might be keeping a keen ear out. That was, if there was anyone around to hear. It seemed that there weren’t any workers in the production part of the factory. Which, on second thought, was understandable given the late hour. 

They found what appeared to be where the finished product was placed to lie in wait to be transported. Forklifts were moving large crates, with Kobra cultists directing them. All of the crates that were being moved were black with red markings. The plain wooden crates stayed on the line, ignored and untouched.

“It’s a massive shipment,” Kaldur said under his breath, brow drawn and tense. 

“Yeah, but they’re only taking new product off the line. They’re not touching this venom.” Superboy pointed out, and Danny nodded as he had noticed that as well.

“Maybe freshness counts?” Megan tentatively suggested. 

Before anymore considerations could be had, Superboy jerked his head to the side. His lips were pursed in thought, and he seemed to be listening to something. “Helicopter’s coming,” he eventually told them.

_ Robin, Wally have you found anything?  _ Danny checked in telepathically.

_ Yeah, bad news, we figured out what they’re making.  _ Robin answered, _ It’s a mix of Kobra venom and Cadmus’ blockbuster formula. _

Danny murmured to the three of the Team with him, “Guess that answers why they aren’t touching this venom.”

Kaldur nodded, and spoke to catch up Robin and Wally,  _ Careful you two, Superboy said a helicopter’s coming. We’re going to have company.  _ Aloud, he said, “Megan, Danny you two go find out who the buyer is.”

Danny gave a thumbs up and turned himself invisible. Next to him, Megan cloaked herself like she had done to the Bio-ship earlier. Examining her closely, Danny could tell it was more like camouflage than true invisibility. If he squinted, he could make out her shape as a sort of ripple in his field of vision. He put a hand on her shoulder to indicate that he was still next to her, and then stood up from where he was crouched. Quietly, he launched into the air and flew over the heads of the cultists moving the boxes of product.

He and Megan followed one of the forklifts around the side of the building and out to the helicopter pad. Standing in front of the now-landed helicopter were four figures. One had a hulking form, its muscles grotesquely ripped in some places and face twisted into an inhuman snarl. Next to the creature, stood a pale man with a red cloak and a ginger-haired woman holding a case of purple vials. They were all facing a blond man with some sort of hockey mask. The blond man must be the buyer, Danny figured as he examined the four figures. 

_ Sending a telepathic image of the buyer now.  _ Megan said over the link, the message overlaid with an image of the blond man. Danny blinked away the thought, disoriented by the sensation of seeing something in his mind. 

Kaldur sounded surprised when he replied,  _ Sportsmaster? He is the buyer?  _

_ Sportsmaster?  _ Danny inquired,  _ Am I supposed to know who that is? _

_ I’ll explain later,  _ Kaldur's answered. There was a pause, and his voice sounded tighter, _ Comms are down, I can’t get word to Red Tornado. We need a plan, now.  _

“Let’s return to Kaldur and Superboy,” Danny whispered under his breath to Megan, who was hovering in the air next to him. He saw her form ripple as she nodded, and the two silently flew back to the product line.

Robin spoke up,  _ We still have the advantage of stealth. _

_ Our first priority is preventing this shipment from leaving the island, _ Kaldur ordered firmly.

The sound of Robin laughing filled Danny’s head,  _ Funny, I had the same thought.  _

_ We need to buy ourselves time to think of a plan.  _ Danny telepathically mumbled. 

_ Robin, can you sabotage the helicopter without being seen?  _ Kaldur’s words were less of a question and more like another order.

_ Who do you think I am?  _ Robin laughed again, confident and snarky,  _ Of course I can.  _

Wally, still presumably annoyed with Robin, asked,  _ What are the rest of us going to do?  _

Danny landed next to Kaldur and Megan to Superboy as they uncloaked themselves. The two had moved and were now crouched in front of an open crate. Peering in, Danny saw that it was filled to the brim with what might have been bricks of plastic explosives. He raised an eyebrow at that, barely resisting the urge to whistle and make a quip. Kaldur smiled and gave Danny a knowing look.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Danny smirked.

Kaldur chuckled, low and warm, “I think we found our plan.”

The plan was deceptively simple, Danny thought as he watched his teammates move into position. Most of the Team would act as a distraction while he and Megan stealthily placed explosives on the boxes of Kobra venom. Sportsmaster, thinking that he was under attack, would flee to the helicopter and leave without looking too closely at his cargo. Then, when the helicopter was well into the air…  _ boom.  _

They just weren’t expecting the helicopter to crash into the factory and send the whole thing up in flames.

“Well,” Danny began, “Shit.” 

* * *

Back on the Bio-ship, Danny found his thoughts circling around the mission. The whole thing was a headache, but he had to admit that it felt good to help. It was, at least, better than sitting on his ass in Vlad’s mansion all day like he had been for the past few months. He still had questions, though. 

“Now that we’re out of mortal peril, who the hell is Sportsmaster and why is it such a big deal he was the buyer?” Danny asked, a note of complaint in his voice that he wasn’t filled in earlier. 

It was Wally that answered, “He’s a supervillain that ran with the League of Shadows.”

Danny snorted, “‘League of Shadows’? Isn’t that a bit on the nose.”

“Eh, you know how overdramatic villain types are,” Robin grinned and then sobered up, “But, still, it doesn’t track. Sportsmaster doesn’t have the juice to acquire the blockbuster formula or to get Kobra to do his dirty work.”

“And neither of them have the chops to bond blockbuster with venom. That took some major nerdage,” Wally mumbled, brow creasing in thought.

“I believe the expression is ‘tip of the iceberg’,” Kaldur said pointedly. 

Superboy groaned, “Great, it’s not like we needed things to get more complicated.”

“This mission was like one step forward, a dozen steps back,” Danny frowned and glanced over to where Robin and Wally sat on the Bio-ship. “For a lot of reasons.”

“Why are you looking at me? You’re not perfect either!” Robin all but shouted in protest.

Danny held his hands up in mock surrender. “I never claimed to be perfect, but Robin you seriously can’t think after today you’re fit to lead us.”

“And what do you mean by that?”

Kaldur stood from his seat to approach Robin, “You and Danny do have the most experience, but perhaps that is exactly what has left you unprepared. Fighting alongside Batman, your roles are defined. You two do not need to talk. But this team is new, and a leader must be clear, explicit. He cannot vanish and expect others to play parts in an unknown plan.”

Robin started, “Oh, so I’m supposed to hold everyone’s hands?” then paused. He groaned and shook his head. “Who am I kidding?”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself, Kaldur,” Danny said, some of the tension draining from him. Kaldur’s level voice calmed the annoyance that sparked at his nerves when he thought about how piss poor the mission had gone at first. And how it had literally blown up at the end. 

“Then who do you propose leads?” Wally questioned, almost accusingly.

Megan tipped her head to the side in consideration. “Well, what about Danny?”

“Me?” Danny scoffed.  _ Him _ leading the team? He had barely even considered it. He was in no position to lead anyone with the disaster that his career as Phantom had been. It was just one mistake after another. More of his victories could be attributed to luck or on-the-spot thinking rather than any sort of thorough plan like a leader would need.

“You do have the most experience. Wasn’t that why you joined? To show us what you know.” Robin had acquiesced that being leader wasn’t in the cards for him, but there was still a hint of reluctance in his voice. Which, Danny didn’t fault him for. He didn’t agree that he should be leader anymore than Robin did.

He shrugged awkwardly, “I-I guess, but I didn’t exactly see ‘lead a bunch of teenagers’ on the job requirements.”

“You sound uncertain.” Kaldur’s voice was a low hum in his throat.

“Hell, I can’t say I’m thrilled about being nominated,” Danny hesitated and then met Kaldur’s gaze, “Kaldur, you were the one to take charge when everything went to hell. The Team needs someone who can keep a clear head. I was ready to strangle Robin and Wally as soon as things started going wrong.” Both Robin and Wally shouted an offended “ _ Hey!” _ , but Danny brushed them off. “Sorry, not sorry. Point is, Kaldur you were meant to lead this team.”

Robin nodded in agreement, “You’re the only one who can.”

“Hello, Megan! It’s so obvious.” Megan cheerfully chirped. 

“Could have told you,” Superboy added, more warmth in his voice than usual. 

Wally was the last to agree with a tentative, “...Okay.”

Kaldur put his hands on Robin’s shoulders and leveled his gaze with him, “Then I accept the burden until you are ready to lift it from my shoulders. You were born to lead this team. Maybe not now, but soon.”

Robin had it in him to somberly nod, but that didn’t last long. After a few seconds, a wicked grin broke out on his face, “Weeeell, since you’re our great leader, you get to be the one to explain what happened to Batman.”

* * *

**July 23rd, Mount Justice**

Stepping out of the Bio-ship, Danny stretched his arms over his head with a big yawn. He was exhausted after the mission. Once out of range of the jammers, Red Tornado had informed them that they would be given the night to rest before Batman gave them their debriefing in the afternoon. Which gave them the chance to hit the hay and rest up. It was well past midnight at this point, and besides that he still hadn’t adjusted to using his powers so much again. The others filed out of the ship behind him, also looking weary and ready to drop. 

Wally, however, had a different idea. “Now that that’s over, I’m  _ famished.  _ Who here wants pizza?”

“You’re always hungry,” Robin scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Superboy frowned, “It’s 1 A.M.,” he pointed out. 

“Hey,” Wally complained, “it’s never too late for pizza.”

That caused a twinge in Danny’s chest. He could imagine Tucker saying the same thing, stupid grin on his face. Usually the Nasty Burger was their go-to, but when it was too late after patrol there was a dive open 24 hours that served the best thin crust pizza. It was horribly greasy and hit the spot when he was dead tired from catching ghosts. 

He was so lost in thought, he barely heard Robin say, “There’s a place in Happy Harbor that’s open late.”

“Going out on the town with friends?” Megan’s face lit up, and she clapped her hands in front of her, “I say let’s do it!”

“I suppose unwinding after the mission wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Kaldur agreed despite the tiredness in his voice. 

  
Danny half expected them to turn and leave right then, so he was surprised when Wally clapped a hand on his shoulder. He yelped, surprised, and Wally laughed at the reaction. “You in, Danny?”

“Me?” Danny asked, a bit bewildered. He was not used to getting invited places. The Team being this willing to bring him into the fold was a bit foreign to him. Usually he was getting name-called in the halls and shoved in lockers, not asked to hang out in the middle of the night. He bit his lip and, softly, replied. “Yeah I’d like that.”

“Great!” Wally exclaimed and let go of Danny’s shoulder. 

If the others were this willing to trust Danny and try to be his friend, the least he could do was accept their olive branch. And, speaking of olive branches… 

“Just, uh, you guys go ahead,” Danny began, “I’ll meet you there.”

“You sure?” Kaldur inquired. He looked Danny up and down, as if searching for some unseen injury or other reason for him to stay behind. That put a bit of color on Danny’s cheeks.

“Yeah, I need to make a phone call first.” 

The Team shrugged and nodded. Wally gave him the name of the pizza place so that Danny could look it up later to navigate to, and they all made their way out of the Cave. 

He sighed and headed to his room. It was still bare and impersonal. The white empty walls staring back at him, filling him with the uncomfortable sensation that maybe this place was only temporary. He was starting to hope that maybe this Team could be a permanent change in his life. Something to give him meaning. Maybe if he painted the walls, the idea that this was only a transitory state would fade away. 

Danny retrieved his phone from his bedside table, took a deep breath, and steadied himself. Cautiously, he spoke, “Hey Vlad? There was something I needed help with…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaa thank you so much for the response on the first chapter! I'm blown away by the support. <3 I didn't expect to get around to the next chapter so soon, but I was motivated by the reception this fic received.
> 
> I'm still figuring out exactly how to integrate the episodes in an interesting way. Drop Zone isn't my favorite episode, but it's an important one, so I had to include it. Also still deciding on if/any ships to feature. Being mostly from Danny's POV, the YJ canon ships will be very background but there's always the potential to pair Danny with someone (or just keep it gen). 
> 
> Love you all, see you next time~


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